Israeli forces kill three Palestinians in West Bank so far in February: UN

The Israeli military killed three Palestinians in the occupied West Bank between February 3 and 16, bringing the total killings since the start of the year to nine, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) has said.

Two of the nine were children, the office reported in its latest update.

Most recently, Israeli forces shot and killed two men in Qalqilya governorate, and one in Jericho. Palestinian security forces also killed a 15-year-old Palestinian boy and wounded his sister and father in Tubas governorate; the five-year-old girl was later declared clinically dead, the office said.

Another 137 Palestinians – including 11 children – have been wounded over the same timeframe, 78 by Israeli forces and 59 by Israelis from illegal settlements.

OCHA documented at least 86 Israeli settler attacks against Palestinians across 60 communities, leading to the displacement of 146 people and the vandalisation of more than 800 olive trees and saplings.

Most incidents were recorded in Nablus governorate, particularly Qusra and Talfit villages, followed by Ramallah governorate. Overall, the hardest-hit area in the West Bank for displacement in 2026 is the Jordan Valley, which accounts for 90 percent of Palestinians displaced so far.


Palestinian-American killed by Israeli settlers in occupied West Bank

A young Palestinian-American man was killed and four other people were injured as they tried to stop a group of armed Israeli settlers from stealing their sheep in the occupied West Bank.

Israeli forces shoot, arrest Palestinian man as West Bank raids continue

The Israeli military has shot and wounded a young Palestinian man near occupied East Jerusalem before arresting him, the Wafa news agency reports. Local sources told Wafa the incident unfolded in the town of ar-Ram. There were no further details about the man’s condition.

Across other parts of the occupied West Bank, raids, arrests and seizures of property continued apace throughout the evening.

A group of Israeli settlers took over two buildings containing multiple apartments near Hebron, where they raised the Israeli flag and the Star of David on them, Wafa reported.

Israeli forces also stormed several neighbourhoods in the el-Bireh area, where they patrolled the streets and fired stun grenades.

And in Tuqu, southeast of Bethlehem, soldiers raided at least one home, though no arrests were reported.

Trump rattled by UK’s unexpected refusal to use military bases against Iran

US President Donald Trump has issued a 10-day ultimatum to Iran for a deal on the Islamic Republic's nuclear programme, failing which the US would launch airstrikes. He, however, suffered a setback from the UK, a US ally, which has reportedly refused to let American jets use its bases both within and outside the country. Rifat Jawaid looks at this extraordinary development.

US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee promises to 'neuter ICC and ICJ'

Speaking at the Begin Center in Jerusalem, US ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee was asked what the US would do to prevent dual US-Israeli citizens being arrested for their role in Israel's genocide in Gaza. Huckabee pledged to 'neuter' the International Criminal Court and International Court of Justice and 'sanction' those involved in such efforts to prevent US citizens being arrested.

‘Deep Dark Son Of A B**ch’: Jeffrey Sachs Loses Cool At Netanyahu's Iran War Push

American economist Jeffrey Sachs launches a fierce critique of U.S. foreign policy, accusing Washington and President Donald Trump of misleading the public over wars in the Middle East, including Iran. He questions whether American democracy truly functions on life-and-death decisions, claims wars were sold through narratives and focus groups, and argues interventions from Iraq to Syria were based on phony pretenses. Sachs also criticises regime change operations, CIA secrecy, and what he calls a “game” of power politics. He warns America’s greatest risks come from within, not from China.

Jeremy Scahill Says Trump Has Essentially Decided to Launch War Against Iran

Despite chairing the first meeting of his newly formed Board of Peace on Thursday, President Donald Trump continues to threaten war against Iran as the Pentagon positions a massive fighting force in the Middle East. Trump said he would give Tehran about two weeks to reach a deal on its nuclear program, but media reports indicate that he could launch an attack within days. Iran maintains its nuclear enrichment program is for peaceful civilian purposes.

Journalist Jeremy Scahill says Trump already “used the veneer” of negotiations to attack Iran last year, and that despite ongoing talks between the two countries, he has essentially already decided to launch a new war that could quickly spiral out of control.

“I’ve been told by military experts who spent decades working in the Pentagon that there’s a spirit of delusion that has just taken hold in the administration,” says Scahill. “You have elements here who are absolutely obsessed with Iran and destroying the Islamic Revolution.

IRAN LIVE: Khamenei Issues ‘URGENT’ ANNOUNNCEMENT | US On HIGH Alert?

The Strategy Behind the Riots in Iran

Hadi Hotait’s inaugural field report without Laith Marouf, takes us on a tour of Tehran to investigate the targets of the riots in January, which primarily focused on public services like busses, fire-stations & trucks, ambulances and houses of worship. Hadi interviews two Iranian journalists at the sites visited, Mahmoud Pirhayati and Alireza Akbari, to get the details.

'An existential war': Prof. Mohammad Marandi on the coming US-Israeli assault on Iran

Professor Mohammad Marandi of the University of Tehran joins The Grayzone's Max Blumenthal to discuss the looming US-Israeli regime change war on Iran and how his country will respond, both militarily and politically.

Marandi forecasts economically devastating consequences, with an energy crisis brought on by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, the possible collapse of Gulf family monarchies, and a militarily unmanageable environment for the Trump administration.

While Trump reportedly considers a series of "symbolic" strikes to weaken Iran's negotiating hand, Marandi argues that Iran has no choice but to respond with maximum force.

Why Iran War Would SPIRAL Out Of Control - Expert Trita Parsi Explains

Twelve Palestine Action activists granted bail


_{Harland 'Harley' Archer, left, and Qesser Zuhrah were released from prison on bail on Friday}

Twelve activists linked to the Palestine Action group who were charged with breaking into the British site of an Israel-linked defence firm have been released on bail. There were tears of joy at London’s Central Criminal Court, better known as the Old Bailey, as the 12 prisoners, including hunger strikers Teuta Hoxha, Kamran Ahmed, Qesser Zuhrah and Heba Muraisi, were released on Friday.

The group – which also included Zara Farooque, Salaam Mahmood, Moiz Ibrahim, Finn Collins, Hannah Davidson, Harland (Harley) Archer, Louie Adams and Liam Mullany – had been held on remand in connection with a raid on the Elbit Systems factory in Filton, near Bristol, on August 6, 2024.

“Despite the state’s best efforts to break each and every one of them, they will walk out today with their heads held high,” said a spokesperson for the Filton 24 Defence Committee, hailing their release as a “monumental victory”. The release of the 12, which comes after 11 other defendants charged in connection with the raid were also granted bail, means that 23 out of the so-called “Filton 24” are now out of prison.

On February 4, six of the activists were acquitted of aggravated burglary, the most serious of the charges they faced in connection with the raid at ⁠London’s Woolwich Crown Court. The jury was unable to reach a verdict on charges of criminal damage. On Wednesday, the same court dropped aggravated burglary charges, which carry a maximum sentence of life in prison, against the remaining 18 Filton 24 members, granting five more defendants bail.

Only Samuel Corner, who faced an additional charge of allegedly hitting a female police sergeant with a sledgehammer, remains on remand. He did not apply for bail on Friday. The Filton 24 Defence Committee called for Corner’s release. “This isn’t right, or just, given he has already spent over 18 months in prison with no convictions. He should also be granted immediate bail,” said the spokesperson.

The release of the activists comes after the British High Court ruled that the government’s ban on Palestine Action as a “terror group” was unlawful and disproportionate.

The justice system is terminally slow but still works.

US envoy suggests it would be ‘fine’ if Israel expands across Middle East


_{Mike Huckabee says he does not regret meeting with convicted spy Jonathan Pollard}

Mike Huckabee, the United States ambassador to Israel, has suggested that he would not object if Israel were to take most of the Middle East, stressing what he described as the Jewish people’s right to the land.

In an interview with conservative commentator Tucker Carlson that aired on Friday, Huckabee was pressed about the geographical borders of Israel, which he argues are rooted in the Bible. Carlson told Huckabee that the biblical verse had promised the land to the descendants of Abraham, including the area between the Euphrates River in Iraq and the Nile River in Egypt.

Such a swath would encompass modern-day Lebanon, Syria, Jordan and parts of Saudi Arabia. “It would be fine if they took it all,” said Huckabee, who was appointed by President Donald Trump last year.

Carlson, who appeared taken aback by the statement, asked Huckabee if indeed he would approve of Israel expanding over the entire region. “They don’t want to take it over. They’re not asking to take it over,” the ambassador replied.

The US envoy, an avowed Christian Zionist and staunch defender of Israel, later appeared to walk back his assertion, saying that it “was somewhat of a hyperbolic statement”. Still, he left the door open for Israeli expansionism based on his religious interpretation. “If they end up getting attacked by all these places, and they win that war, and they take that land, OK, that’s a whole other discussion,” Huckabee said.

The principle of territorial integrity and the prohibition against the acquisition of land by force have been a bedrock of international law since World War II.

In 2024, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruled that Israel’s occupation of the Palestinian territories is illegal and must cease immediately. But Israeli law does not clearly demarcate the country’s borders. Israel also occupies the Golan Heights in Syria, which it illegally annexed in 1981. The US is the only country that recognises Israel’s claimed sovereignty over the Syrian territory. After the 2024 war with Hezbollah, Israel also set up military outposts in five points inside Lebanon.

Some Israeli politicians, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, have openly promoted the idea of a “Greater Israel” with expanded borders. Israel’s Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich stirred international outrage in 2023 when he spoke at an event featuring a map that included the Palestinian territories and portions of Lebanon, Syria and Jordan as part of Israel, set against the colours of the Israeli flag.

In his interview with Carlson, Huckabee tried to argue that Israel’s right to exist is rooted in international law, but he also attacked the legal institutions that oversee international law for their opposition to Israeli abuses. “One of the reasons I’m so grateful President Trump and Secretary Rubio are pushing hard, trying to get rid of the ICC [International Criminal Court] and the ICJ is because they have become rogue organisations that are no longer really about an equal application of law,” he said.

Beyond his professed religious devotion to Israel, Huckabee has faced criticism for failing to speak up for the rights of US citizens who have been killed and imprisoned by Israeli forces during his ambassadorship. Last year, Huckabee even sparked anger from some conservatives in the US when he met with convicted spy Jonathan Pollard, who sold US intelligence secrets to the Israeli government, details of which later made it to the Soviet Union at the height of the Cold War.

Pollard, a former civilian analyst in the US Navy, served 30 years in jail and moved to Israel in 2020 after his release. He never expressed regret for his crimes, and in 2021, he called on Jewish employees in US security agencies to spy for Israel.

Farmers in Gaza risk Israeli bullets to bring their fields back to life

As soon as the “ceasefire” in Gaza began in October, Palestinian farmer Mohammed al-Slakhy and his family headed straight for their farms in the Zeitoun area of Gaza City. After more than two years of Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza – and despite ongoing Israeli attacks – it was finally safe enough to return, and attempt to rebuild and restore.

Mohammed and his family spent months clearing rubble from the ground and whatever was left of their greenhouses, which were flattened during the fighting, like many of the buildings in Gaza. With very limited resources, they prepared the soil and planted the first courgette crop, hoping it would be ready to harvest by early spring.

But even this limited attempt to bring the family’s land back to life is not without risk. As Mohammed explains, every time he goes to tend to his field, he is risking his life. A few hundred metres away sit Israeli tanks, and the sound of bullets flying by is common.

More than three hectares (7.5 acres) of Mohammed’s greenhouses were levelled to the ground. The destruction also included his entire irrigation network, all nine of his wells, two solar power systems, and two desalination plants.

Mohammed’s losses reflect the wider extent of the damage to the agricultural sector in Gaza. According to a July 2025 report by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), more than 80 percent of cropland was damaged, and less than 5 percent remained available for cultivation.

And even with the “ceasefire”, the losses have not stopped for Gaza’s farmers, as Israel expands a so-called buffer zone, within which its forces are based.

In fact, many Palestinians fear that Gaza’s agricultural lands will be forcibly taken by Israel if the buffer zone becomes a permanent fixture. Blueprints released as part of United States President Donald Trump’s “Board of Peace” plan for Gaza show many agricultural areas erased.

https://www.aljazeera.com/features/2026/2/21/farmers-in-gaza-risk-israeli-bullets-to-bring-their-fields-back-to-life

Israeli blockade

According to Palestinian farmers, the Israeli blockade of Gaza is one of the biggest challenges they face in their efforts to reclaim agricultural land.

Since October 7, 2023, Israel has largely prevented the entry of any agricultural equipment or supplies, such as seeds, pesticides, fertilisers, irrigation networks, or tractors. That has led to a huge shortage, with what is available still liable to being damaged in bombing, or in the case of seeds, pesticides, and fertilisers, reaching expiry. The prices of what little is available have also skyrocketed due to the Israeli restrictions.

And even when the materials can be obtained, they do not guarantee a return. Eid said that he had planted tomatoes in his greenhouses to harvest in the spring, paying an exorbitant amount to acquire the seeds, fertilisers, and pesticides. After 90 days of costly care for the plants, and when it was time to start harvesting, the entire crop was ruined because the pesticides and fertilisers he had bought turned out to be ineffective. He was forced to replant the crop.

Eid noted that the current economic conditions in Gaza mean that it is hard to find customers for the produce. “Even when we manage to keep the plants alive and harvest the crop, we don’t know if we’ll be able to sell it,” Eid said.

The instability of the market in Gaza is causing heavy losses for local farmers. Waleed Miqdad, an agricultural produce wholesaler, explained that Israeli authorities sometimes close the crossings and at other times flood the market with various goods, causing significant losses for Palestinian farmers.

He added that Israeli goods are usually of a lower quality and are priced more cheaply. “Our local produce, although much fewer in quantity than before the war, still has a distinctive quality and taste. Many of our customers prefer local produce,” Waleed told Al Jazeera.

But many residents of Gaza, whose economy has been devastated as a result of the war, do not have the money to be able to choose the higher-priced items. The competition from Israeli produce is therefore making it difficult for Palestinian farmers to market their produce and make a profit.

It's all by design to keep Palestinians dependent on aid while destroying any chance at revival.

West Bank Violence RAGES, IDF Does Nothing

No arrests have been announced after the killing 19-year-old Palestinian-American Nasrallah Abu Siam in the West Bank.

Seyed M. Marandi: "War for Survival" - Iran’s Strategy as War Is Imminent

Seyed Mohammad Marandi is a professor at Tehran University and a former advisor to Iran's Nuclear Negotiation Team. Prof. Marandi argues that an existential war is likely imminent, and it will set the entire region on fire.

More setback for Trump on Iran; Tucker Carlson shares third degree experience

US lawmakers have decided to block Donald Trump's plans for military strikes against Iran by holding a vote in Congress. Meanwhile, Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi has revealed that the US delegation never asked for zero enrichment during the two rounds of talks between Tehran and Washington. Elsewhere, American journalist Tucker Carlson has shared his harrowing experience at the Ben Gurion Airport, alleging the detention of his producers after his interview with Mike Huckabee. Rifat Jawaid analyses today's developments with a warning to US voters.

Palestinian woman killed as Israeli army shells Gaza despite ceasefire

https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20260222-palestinian-woman-killed-as-israeli-army-shells-gaza-despite-ceasefire/

A Palestinian woman was killed by Israeli gunfire on Sunday in the northern Gaza Strip, despite a ceasefire agreement in force since Oct. 10, 2025, medical sources said, Anadolu reports. The sources said that the 27-year-old lost her life in the town of Beit Lahia.

According to witnesses, the Israeli attack targeted an area outside the army’s deployment and control zone under the ceasefire agreement.

Israeli warplanes also targeted eastern areas of the city of Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip, they added. Israeli military vehicles also opened fire on the eastern areas of Khan Younis in the south, while naval forces fired toward the city’s coastline, according to the witnesses.

In Gaza City, Israeli fighter jets carried out airstrikes on eastern areas, accompanied by sporadic artillery shelling on the same locations.

The US-backed ceasefire has been in place in Gaza since Oct. 10, halting Israel’s two-year offensive that has killed more than 72,000 people, most of them women and children, and injured over 171,000 others since October 2023.

Despite the truce, Israeli forces have committed hundreds of violations through shelling and gunfire, killing 614 Palestinians and injuring 1,643 others, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry.

An American Politician Went to Palestine. Now Democrats Are Punishing Her

Local Democrats attacked her. A high-profile Democratic bundler demanded she drop out. Israeli settlers threw eggs at her. Congressional candidate Effie Phillips-Staley says all this happened to her as she did what many US politicians don’t: she visited Palestine. And she tells Prem that she is not backing down.

Phillips-Staley is running in the Democratic primary for New York’s 17th Congressional District, a seat currently held by Republican Rep. Mike Lawler. In this interview, Phillips-Staley talks to Prem Thakker about the backlash she’s faced for calling out Israel’s apartheid, her background as the daughter of an immigrant from El Salvador and a military veteran from Oklahoma, why she supports Medicare-for-All and abolishing ICE, and so much more.